6 Bengali Anthology Films to Watch

 Anthology films have a flavour of their own. They take a very different approach to execution. Sometimes, all the stories are completely different and do not have any link to each other, just like "ABCs of Death", and sometimes there is a common link in each story, like "Babel". Although very few Bengali anthology films have been made to date, here are a few of my favourites. 

1. Teen Kanya (1961): This film by Satyajit Ray is said to be the first Anthology film in Bengal. The film comprises 3 different short stories by Rabindranath Tagore, "Postmaster", "Monihara", and "Samapti". This is by far my favourite anthology film when it comes to Indian films. (I have not watched anything in any language other than Hindi.) The stories are about 3 very different women from completely different backgrounds and age groups and their relationships with the men in their lives. 

2. Mahanagar@Kolkata (2010): This film, directed by Suman Mukhopadhyay, comprises 3 stories by Nabarun Bhattacharya, and the common link in the stories is "Fear" of the challenges of the changing world. The film stars renowned actors like Rituparna Sengupta, Chandan Roy Sanyal, Anjan Dutta, Sreelekha Mitra and theatre thespian Arun Mukhopadhyay. My favourite story is about Biren, a jobless old man who is always afraid of the regular crimes and shootouts of the city and is teased by everyone. His worries emerge in his single line, "Murder to ekta hobei!" and the tragedy is when it finally manifests in a fatal turn of events. 

3. Jekhane Bhooter Bhoy (2012): The film, directed by Sandip Ray, comprises 3 short stories, 1 by Saradindu Bandopadhyay and 2 by Satyajit Ray. The common link between the stories is Satyajit Ray's famous character, Tarini Khuro,  who narrates the story to a bunch of kids. The first story is Ray's Anathbabu's Bhoy, the 2nd is his Brown Saheber Bari and the 3rd Bhoot Bhabishyat by Saradindu Bandopadhyay. The film is very entertaining and one of the best horror films in Bengali cinema with mind-blowing performances by Paran Bandopdhyay and Saswata Chatterji.

4. Chaar (2014): Another film by Sandip Ray consists of 4 different stories of various authors. The 1st story is written by Parasuram (Rajsekhar Basu), the 2nd and 3rd by Satyajit Roy and the 4th by Saradindu Bandyopadhyay. My absolute favourite among the 4 is Dui Bondhu by Satyajit Ray, about 2 close friends who were separated in childhood when one of them moved to another city. The way they reunite after 25 years is quite hilarious. This movie is enjoyable to watch.

5. Crisscross (2018): This film, directed by Birsa Dasgupta, is about 5 different women leading absolutely different lives in the same city. It stars popular actors like Mimi, Noosrat, Jaya Ahsan, Priyanka Sarkar and Sohini Sarkar. Although they have their separate stories and lead different lives, the only link that is common among them is the grief they undergo and have to heal from, which finally unites them into a sweet bond. 

6. Finally Bhalobasa (2019): Directed by Anjan Dutt, the film is strewn with 3 different stories of people who are somehow connected. There is a lonely man who misses his son and who gets the company of a young woman whose partner has moved to another city for a job. There is a young man who gets hired by a rich businessman and forms a bond of trust with the businessman's abused wife. There is a gay man who is dying of AIDS and forms a relationship with his male nurse, who is homophobic. The stories are beautiful and nicely interconnected by the director. I have always enjoyed his storytelling, where characters build up a bond very slowly but beautifully. 

I have heard of other anthology films like X and Teen Kahon but did not get the opportunity to watch those.